Tricks for removing a condensing unit fan blade

Sometimes these condenser fan blades are real hard to get off. Most homeowners and myself do not own a fan blade puller. Most of the time fan blades are easy to get off using the method below. I use this method all the time. Please keep in mind that the condenser fan motor is bad and you are not worried about saving the fan motor only the fan blade. We do not want to damage or bend the fan blade.

1. Sand the existing shaft with sand cloth to remove the rust if any of the shaft is sticking up out of the top of the hub.

2. Use WD40 on shaft and lock nut. Loosen lock nut on blade with an open end wrench. If the lock nut is stubborn and will not come loose, hit the top of the blade hub a few times lightly with a hammer to help the WD40 vibrate into the threads. If the lock nut or allen screw will still not come loose then you might need to apply some heat with a torch.

3. Cut the existing motor shaft off using an electric hack saw (SawsAll) or hack saw. It is tough going using a hand driven hack saw. It is much easier cutting through the shaft with an electric Sawsall with a metal cutting blade.

4. Once you have the shaft cut off from the motor. Take the blade and lay it down on some concrete. Take a deep well socket 2″ to 3″ deep and position the socket underneath the hub on the fan blade and on the concrete. Take a hammer and drive the shaft out. When the shaft gets down below the top of the hub use a 3/8″ extension to drive the shaft out of the hub. If you mushroom the top of the shaft you might need to drive the shaft back out from the other end a little bit and use a metal file to file away the mushroomed metal so the shaft can be driven out of the hub. I use this method all the time. This should work. If you have any comments please comment below. We will be happy to answer any questions. Please email us if you have a question. Our email address is: support@arnoldservice.com Below we have a YouTube video made by grayfurnaceman which shows how to remove the condenser fan blade with a fan blade puller. Thanks to grayfurnaceman for making this informative video.